


Homecoming

by MaddieWrites



Series: The Darkness Inside [2]
Category: Septiplier - Fandom
Genre: Angst, Cute things, Fluff, M/M, a few not so cute things
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-05-19
Updated: 2017-06-05
Packaged: 2018-11-02 15:34:36
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 18
Words: 12,141
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10947462
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MaddieWrites/pseuds/MaddieWrites
Summary: Part Two of The Darkness Inside. When Mark and Jack go to Ireland to meet Jack's family, things start to come to light regarding why Jack had to leave Ireland and dark secrets are uncovered.





	1. Steak and plans

**Author's Note:**

> Hello everyone! I'm back with Part Two! Thanks for waiting!!! I hope it was worth the wait! Updates daily unless life happens... Anyways I hope you enjoy this!!! Leave a comment if you do (they fuel me to write more)!

“There's absolutely nothing to be afraid of Mark. It's perfectly safe. Thousands of people take planes every day. We'll be /fine/.” Jack promised. Mark didn't look convinced.   
“What if an engine fails? We'll be right over the ocean!”  
“An engine won't fail, but we put this off for six months. We can't push it back any more. We aren't even leaving until tomorrow! You have no reason to worry.” Jack offered a reassuring smile. “Shouldn't you be recording videos to post while we're in Ireland anyways?”  
“I've been recording for three days straight! I'm taking a break, and don't change the subject.” Mark scolded.   
“Well since you're on break, why don't you do some airplane research and learn more about them so they don't scare you so much?”  
“Because I /really/ need to shower before I do anything else. Do you wanna take one too?”  
“I think you'd rather have steak waiting for you when you get out of the shower. I need to double check the tickets anyways. Maybe later.” Jack smirked, pulling Mark into a kiss.   
“Mmmm, I'm holding you to your word.”  
“Go shower. You're gross and you stink.” Jack giggled, shoving him away.   
“Alright.” Mark sighed. “You know you agreed to my grossness when you said you'd marry me.”  
“You agreed to shower regularly when you asked me to marry you. Seriously, get out of here. You're a bio hazard by now.”  
“Fine." Mark caved. "There'd better be steak when I'm done.”  
“There will be.” Jack promised and Mark headed to the bathroom. 

 

“Hey, what do you think of this cake design?” Jack asked when Mark came back and sat down to eat. He looked at the picture on Jack's phone.  
“No, I want a /giant/ cake! You promised if I let you pick the flavor of the cake I could make it as big as I wanted.” Mark reminded him.  
“Alright then your highness. How big do you want this cake to be?”  
“/Giant/.”   
“Okay. /Giant/ it is.” Jack smirked. “Eat your steak.”  
“Do you need help cutting yours first?”  
“...maybe a little help.” Jack admitted, blushing. “Three years and you've failed to teach me how to do it myself.”  
“It's only been two and a half years. I still have /plenty/ of time to teach you how to cut up your food by yourself.” Mark smiled, taking the fork and knife from Jack.   
“Well you should've taught me by now.”  
“Don't worry, on our honeymoon we'll go and get steak every night and I'll put you through Steak Cutting 101.” Mark returned the fork and set the knife down when he'd finished cutting and headed back over to cut his own food.   
“I can't wait.” Jack smiled. 

 

“Now, you're sure the plane is completely safe?” Mark asked nervously.   
“I'm positive.” Jack took his hand in an attempt to reassure him. They were getting ready to board now and Mark was a nervous wreck.   
“Like /positive/ positive?”  
“Yes. I'm absolutely sure that nothing bad will happen to you while on this plane.”  
“Boarding row 27.” The flight attendant announced.  
“That's us.” Jack stood. Hopefully Mark would calm down a bit once they were on the plane. If not, the next eleven hours would be very difficult for both of them.


	2. The Plane

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Mark is afraid of flying and Jack just wants to sleep.

“Jack.” Mark whined, jabbing the Irishman in the side. “ Don't go to sleep.”  
“It's an eleven hour flight in the middle of the night. There's not much else to do.” Jack sighed. Mark was significantly calmer now, but he was definitely not able to sleep.  
“There's a bathroom.” Mark wiggled his eyebrows.  
“Mark. No. Very much not in the mood. Just stay here and try to sleep.”  
“I already tried. It's not going to work.”  
“Not if you don't close your eyes.” Jack pointed out.  
“That didn't work last time.” Mark pouted. “I don't want to sleep. I want to cuddle.”  
“We can't; we're on a plane. There are arm rests in the way.” Jack pointed to one. He was trying to be patient since Mark was scared, but it was getting increasingly difficult.  
“Can't we move them out of the way?"  
“They don't move.”  
“Then just sit in my seat with me.” Mark suggested hopefully.  
“We're in public Mark! I can't sit in your lap while we're traveling via public transportation! Can't you just sleep like literally everyone else on this plane?”  
“I don't want to sleep.”  
“I can see that.” Jack frowned. “Well I /do/ want to sleep, so can't you find another way to entertain yourself?”  
“There's nothing to do.”  
“Play on your phone.”  
“That's /boring/.” Mark whined.  
“Then read a book.”  
“I don't have a book.”  
“I have one. It's in my bag. Get it out and read that.” Jack grumbled impatiently. He'd /told/ Mark to bring a book or something else to do on the long plane ride.  
“I don't want to read that book. It's terrible.”  
“It's not terrible, I /told/ you to bring a book or a game, we've got ten more hours to go, and I want to sleep so find something to do.” Jack was struggling to stay calm here.  
“I want to talk to you. I don't want to sleep.” Mark's voice wasn't so sing-songy anymore. He knew Jack was upset but he was still scared and wanted someone to talk to him.   
“All you've talked about is how bored you are and horror games.”  
“I played like twenty horror games in two days. It's all I can think about.” Mark protested, but his voice still had a tone that said 'please calm me down'.   
“Okay, then play one of the horror games.” Jack tried one last time.  
“I don't have one on my phone.”  
“And you didn't bring a book?”  
“No...” Mark said slowly, hoping he wasn't making this worse.  
“Alright...” Jack was clearly not happy about this. “You can talk if you want to. I'll stay awake.”  
“Well now I don't know what to talk about.”  
“How about you give me your phone and we can look at more flower options?” Jack asked, sitting up.  
“Okay.” Mark fished it out of his pocket and gave it to Jack.

 

“Please put your trays up.” The flight attendant smiled.   
“That was the longest eleven hours of my life.” Jack sighed. Now he was in a bad mood because he hadn't gotten to sleep on the plane and Mark tired and had a headache so if he snapped at his fiance it would just end badly.   
“Yeah...” Mark agreed, still feeling a bit guilty after the whole ordeal. “Thanks for staying up with me.”  
“No problem.” Jack forced a smile. “But you're getting a book while we're here so you can read on the way back.”  
“Agreed.”  
“Well, let's go meet my family.”


	3. Greetings

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Meeting Jack's family.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm sorry if this is moving kind of slowly. I need character development. If it's too boring let me know and I'll try to fix it but I really hope it's okay. I feel like you guys are losing interest in this...

“Okay, ready?” Jack asked, about to press the doorbell. They were standing on the porch of his parent's home.   
“Hang on.” Mark took a moment to prepare himself mentally. “Yeah.”  
“Hey,” Jack pulled him down into a kiss. “They'll love you. Don't worry.”  
Mark kissed Jack on the tip of his nose and rang the doorbell. They could hear high heels clicking down the hallway before the door opened to reveal a young woman with long curly brown hair and kind brown eyes.  
“Hi. You must be Mark.” She smiled. She was wearing a short pink dress with matching high heels. “I'm Alison. It's nice to meet you.” Alison held out a hand and Mark shook it.   
“Nice to meet you too.”  
“You're taller than I thought you'd be. Come on in.” She stepped out of the way so they could get inside. “Nice to see you again Jack. It's been a while. I'm glad you stayed in touch, even if it was only through letters.”  
“Me too. Great to see you.” Jack scooped her up in a hug. “Is mum home?”  
“In the living room. Susan's in there too.”  
“Is that everyone who turned up?”  
“Well the boys sort of grew apart from us after you left. I don't talk to them much.”  
“How many of you are there?” Mark asked.  
“Five. Three boys and two girls. Come on.” Jack headed into the living room where his mother tackled him in a hug.   
“Oh Jack! It's been so /long/!” She exclaimed.  
“Yeah... Sorry mum. I just...”  
“I understand. You needed some space. You must be Mark!” She beamed. “Alison's told me wonderful things about you!” She gave Mark a big hug too.  
“Well I certainly hope I live up to your expectations Mrs. McLoughlin.” He smiled.  
“You can call me mum. Jack! Let me see that ring!” She turned her attention back to Jack and Mark was left to introduce himself to the last person in the room, Susan.   
“Hi, I'm Mark.” He held out a hand.  
“I gathered.” She smirked, standing to shake it. “Susan.”   
“It's a pleasure to meet you.”  
“Likewise. I didn't know you existed until yesterday, so...”  
“I didn't know you existed until right now. Jack doesn't talk about his family much.”  
“I'm just glad it's mutual.” She laughed, seeming to relax a bit. “So, what /has/ he told you about us?”  
“He has a sister named Alison and he hasn't spoken to any of his family since he left Ireland.”  
“Did he tell you about Uncle Erwin? He'll be here and you need to be prepared for that. There'll probably be drinks with dinner; we're Irish. If Uncle Erwin shows up... Let me tell you a story.”

 

“So, I think it's safe to conclude from the utter terror in your eyes that you've been told about Uncle Erwin?” Jack asked with a laugh, settling in next to Mark on the couch.  
“Yes. I've been /thoroughly/ educated.” Mark settled his arm around Jack's shoulders and the smaller man relaxed against him.  
“Mmm... We haven't scared you away yet, have we?” Jack smiled.  
“Not /yet/.”  
“Good. I didn't agree to marry a wimp. You signed up for this.”  
“I've loved every minute.”  
“Don't think I didn't notice the past tense you used there.” Jack poked him in the side. “You're stuck with me until death and when I die, I'm coming back as a ghost and I'm going to haunt you until /you/ die too. So, we’ll be together for a while.”  
“I sure hope so.” Mark leaned down for a kiss and heard a camera shutter click, head jerking up to find the source of the sound.  
“Oh don't mind me.” Jack's mum smiled, lowering the camera. “Just want some pictures of you two. Carry on.”  
“I think you sort of killed the mood mum.” Jack sighed.  
“Be cute for the camera! I don't have any pictures of my future son-in-law yet! If you two don't I'll have to break out the mistletoe and pretend it's Christmas.”  
Jack cupped Mark's jaw and kissed him gently, waiting until he heard the camera shutter to pull away.  
“Thank you!” She toddled off to the kitchen.  
“I like your mom.”  
“She'll be your mum too in a few months.”  
“I can't wait.” Mark kissed Jack again.  
“(Mmm... Neither can I.)”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Jack really is part of a family of five kids, three boys and two girls. He really has a sister names Alison, a brother named Malcolm, and a sister named Susan. Omg it took me an hour to find Susan's name. I had to go through two Google pages and two twitters to a tweet that was nearly three years old to find her. I hope you're all happy. (Uncle Erwin was my own creation)


	4. Druncle Erwin

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Uncle Erwin shows up...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I would like to say the title of the chapter was a purposeful misspelling before anyone points it out. This was so short I had to rewrite it right before posting, so I hope it's okay! Also, thanks for reading!!!

The three McLoughlins and one Fishbach were in the living room when the doorbell rang. Mark had never seen a room clear so quickly. Jack quickly dragged him into the kitchen and let his mum answer the door.   
“Oh Uncle Erwin! So nice to see you!” She exclaimed.  
“Do you think we could fit through that window?” Jack whispered to Alison.  
“You're small. I think you have a fair shot.” She whispered back with a giggle.   
“They're all in the kitchen. You'll love Mark. He's a charming young lad.” They could hear Mrs. McLoughlin say. Two pairs of footsteps were coming this way and an elderly man emerged from the doorway. He had a lazy eye and thin gray hair balding in places. He wore a flannel and muck boots like someone who did dirty manual labor but he walked with a cane.  
“Erwin, meet Mark.”  
“Mark!” He ran to hug Alison and she gently steered him in the right direction. For someone so old and thin, he hugged like a python.   
“Careful Erwin.” Mrs. McLoughlin scolded tentatively.  
“It's wonderful to see you again!” He exclaimed.  
“Yeah...” Mark shot Jack a confused look and he motioned for Mark to go with it.   
“Okay, well I'm sure you're all hungry. Let's get started on dinner!” Susan steered Uncle Erwin to the dining room where there were indeed drinks with dinner. Everyone seemed to want to be too drunk to remember experiencing a drunk Uncle Erwin. Everyone except Mark who very much wanted to drink but couldn't because of health reasons.   
“Hey, hey Maaaaaark.” Uncle Erwin motioned for him to come over, beaming. Mark really didn't have another option, so he did.   
“Yes?” He asked.  
“You're Mark, right?”  
“Yes.”  
“You're brave.” Erwin stated rather loudly.  
“Why?”  
“You know, Jack left here.”  
“I did know that.” Mark frowned, wishing even more that he was drunk like Jack and the others.  
“Good.” Erwin took a huge gulp from his drink.  
“Uh, hey. Why did Jack leave?” Mark asked.  
“He left after all them people die. Four of 'em. Killed dead by a creature. Four of em, killed and drained.” He laughed loudly.  
“Drained?” Mark asked, scared but curious.  
“Yes sir. Ain't got no blood left in em. Ole Jack was gooooooood friends with one. He was so upset he left... Eh, two days later. Hightailed out.”  
“What animal killed them?”   
“I dunno, but nothing I've ever seen.” He leaned in uncomfortably close. “They say it was a werewolf.”  
“Werewolf?”  
Erwin's head dropped to his chest and he started snoring loudly. Good. No more drunk Uncle Erwin. Mark was very thankful when Jack decided he wanted to go to bed. He really didn't want to experience any more of Jack's drunken relatives, so he helped Jack out of the dining room to the guest room where they were staying. Mark knew there was no such thing as a werewolf, but he couldn't help but wonder what /had/ killed those people...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And it's still really short, sorry...


	5. Blueberries and Banter

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Mark and Jack go berry picking.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Big thanks to everyone who takes time out of their busy day to comment! It makes me very happy!!!

“Morning Mark.” Jack greeted him with a kiss and a smile. “How'd you sleep?”  
“Good, you?” He mumbled, still a bit groggy.  
“Magnificently since I didn't get to sleep on the plane last night, due to /apparently/ unavoidable circumstances.”  
“I thought you were over that.”  
“You realize we'll have to fly back eventually.” Jack smirked.  
“Ugh, don't remind me.” Mark groaned.   
“Be quiet. We're right below my mum's room. Who knows what she'll think if she hears you groaning like that?” He put a hand over Mark's mouth to silence him.  
“I'm sure she'll pop in to take a picture.” Mark teased, voice a bit muffled by Jack's hand.  
“God I hope not.” Jack giggled, replacing his hand with his lips. Mark sighed contently and relaxed into the kiss.  
“Alright.” Jack pulled away. “Time to get up.”  
“Do we have to?”   
“Yes. Come on, up.”  
“But we didn't get to cuddle on the plane.” Mark protested.  
“We didn't get to sleep on the plane either. Get up.” Jack climbed out of bed and pulled the covers off of Mark, earning a loud groan before his partner finally got up too.  
“That was mean.”  
“We have to eat breakfast before it's lunch time. Put some pants on.”  
Mark did, pulling a shirt on too before following Jack into the kitchen. Jack's mom had gone out and got donuts, evidently not in the mood to cook. Susan must've ate already and Alison was still asleep so it was just Mark, Jack, and Mrs. McLoughlin at the table.   
“So, what do you boys plan to do today?” She asked.  
“I was going to take Mark blueberry picking at that little pond me and Alison used to swim in.” Jack told her.  
“That's a good idea. We can make blueberry pancakes when you two get back.”  
“Yeah, I can't wait.”

 

“You never listen to me!!!” Jack shouted, throwing the door open and storming inside.  
“/I/ never listen!?! What about /you/?” Mark followed him in just as angrily and everyone looked up from their various tasks to see what was going on.  
“I listen just fine! You're the one who doesn't watch out for slippery spots like I tell them or book plane tickets like I tell them or bring a book so they won't keep me up for eleven hours!!!” Jack screamed, slamming his basket of berries down of the coffee table.  
“/That's/ what this is about!?!” Mark asked in disbelief. “You're still all fired up over that stupid plane ride?”  
“That's not what this is about Mark! This is about you forgetting our anniversary /again/!!! You forget everything!!! You forgot Valentines Day last year and my birthday the year before that, now our anniversary too!?! You're /awful/ and you make me do everything because you're too busy with your /stupid/ YouTube channel!!!”  
“I don't make you do everything and it's not stupid! Look, why don't we make pancakes and then talk about this when we've both cooled down a bit, okay?” Mark asked hopefully. It looked like Jack was going to storm out, but after a moment he nodded.  
“Okay.” He sighed and left his basket on the table, heading into the kitchen. Mark took it and followed him.  
“Well that was exotic.” Susan noted, blinking a few times.  
“All couples fight. I'm glad they're going to talk through it instead of just screaming at each other. That shows maturity.” Mrs. McLoughlin decided. “They'll come around.”

 

“Well, how are they?” She asked when Susan came back out of the kitchen.  
“They're both covered in flour and making out on the counter so I'd say pretty good.”  
“See, I told you They'd work it out.” Mrs. McLoughlin smiled. “Nothing to worry about.”  
“Yeah... But did you see Jack's eyes when he was yelling at Mark?” Alison asked. “They got all dark and angry. It was scary.”  
“I'm sure Jack was only caught up in the heat of the moment. It's not like him to yell like that.” Susan pointed out.   
“I guess...”


	6. Cuddles

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Fluffy cuddles.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope you all enjoy it!!!

“I still feel really horrible about yesterday, so I got you flowers and more impressively got up early to get you flowers.” Mark offered a small smile and bouquet of white roses the moment Jack came in the living room.  
“Really? /You/ got up early? That's so sweet, thank you Mark.” Jack beamed and took the flowers into the kitchen so he could put them in water.   
“That poor boy was so upset this morning he didn't know /what/ to do with himself.” Mrs. McLoughlin whispered to Jack. “So I told him since he was up he might as well go get you something nice. He came back with flowers and chocolate for you and just chocolate for me. He's a keeper.” She winked, popping some sort of chocolate candy in her mouth.  
“I know.” Jack smiled, heading back to the living room where Mark was waiting with chocolate and cuddles.  
“I'm sorry about yesterday too. I'm glad we got to talk about it.”   
“Me too. I hate fighting with you.” Mark agreed, putting his arm around Jack who was trying to see how close he could physically get to Mark before they merged into one person.   
“Let's never do that again.”   
“Yeah.” Mark laughed. “Never ever.” He pressed a kiss to Jack's temple and it quickly turned into a kiss on the lips.   
“Eww get a room.” Susan teased and they separated /just/ enough.   
“I think it's cute.” Alison elbowed her. “They can kiss if they want.”  
“Yes, but they can't have chocolate for breakfast.” Mrs. McLoughlin handed Jack and Mark each a plate of blueberry pancakes and forks. “Eat up Jack. You have a busy day ahead of you.” She winked.  
“What's she talking about?” Jack asked.  
“Well, I thought I'd take you to a movie or something.” Mark admitted, blushing.  
“You have the whole day planned to the minute, don't you?”  
“Yeah.”   
“Well I can't wait.” Jack kissed him again and Susan made gross squelching noises until he pulled away.

 

“You've been talking to my mum then?” Jack asked with a laugh. Mark had taken him to a little orchard of white flowering trees. “I used to come here to think when I was upset. There's a river just down here. Come see.” He took Mark's hand and led him through the trees. Sure enough, a river flowed through the grove. The sound of the water tricking through the rocks was very calming. He could see why Jack liked to come here.   
“Come on.”   
Mark looked up and Jack was in his underwear.   
“What?”  
“Let's go swimming.”  
“Now? Really?”  
“Yeah. We've got all day! Come on.”  
Mark shrugged and started undressing. Jack had already waded in up to his waist by thee time Mark was done.  
“Is it cold?”   
“Yes. Get in.” Jack dunked under the water, soaking his hair. Mark hesitantly followed, not wasting time to wade in but instead just plunging in straight away. It was /very/ cold. Jack splashed him as soon as he surfaced.  
“Hey!” Mark exclaimed in mock anger, splashing Jack.  
“Oi!” Jack splashed him back. Mark decided not to send a return splash this time, opting to simply dunk him under the water.   
“That's not fair! You're bigger than I am!” Jack laughed when he surfaced.  
“Only by a few inches.” Mark smirked.   
“Shut up.” Jack splashed him. “I'm twice the fun in half the package.” He huffed, crossing his arms.   
“We'll call it a draw.” Mark smiled, splashing him.   
“Sure, whatever helps you sleep at night. What else did you want to show me?”  
“A few things, but not when we're all wet.”  
“Then dry off.” Jack splashed him again.

 

“Oh! We ate here every Wednesday after school!” Jack exclaimed when they approached the tiny diner.   
“So I've heard.” Mark smiled at his enthusiasm.   
“I always got pie and Alison got a strudel. Come on.” Jack led him inside where they were greeted by elderly staff who were all excited to see Jack again after so long.   
“Who's this!?!” One older woman asked.  
“Mark. We're engaged.” He beamed.  
“That's wonderful!!! Let me see the ring! Pie for you and your date.” She inspected his rings while the other staff got the pie ready. “It's beautiful Jack. Very nice choice. Come have a seat!” She led Mark over to a table by the window.  
“Thank you.” Mark sat down and Jack sat across from him.   
“Everything seems so much smaller now that I'm not eight years old.” Jack laughed, looking around. “I haven't been here in years.”   
“Really? Why not?”  
“Well I haven't exactly been in the neighborhood Mark. I left two and a half years ago, remember?”  
“Right. This is a lovely town. Why did you leave?” Mark asked hopefully, trying to be subtle.  
“It's not important. Two and a half years ago, remember?”  
“Your uncle said something about an animal attack?”  
“Oh...” Jack's face fell. “I guess I just couldn't stay here after... After losing someone so close to me. We knew each other since birth.”  
“I'm sorry I brought it up.” Mark immediately tried to backtrack.   
“It's okay... Look, pie! They make the best pie in the galaxy here.” Jack's excitement returned when their food came.   
“I can't wait to try it.” Mark smiled. Jack's happiness was contagious.   
“Here.” Jack offered him a bite of his slice even though Mark had one too.  
“Wow. That's /amazing/.” He laughed, swallowing.   
“I told you, best pie ever!”  
Mark nodded, mouth full.   
“So, are we going back after this?” Jack asked.  
“I have one more thing to show you, but not until later.”

 

“Why are we out here Mark?” Jack laughed as Mark dragged him towards the clearing. “Isn't this a little far for a picnic?”   
“You'll see why we're here.” Mark smiled, spreading out the blanket.  
“Okay, if you say so. I guess as long as it involves you and food, I'm happy to be here.” Jack sat down and started unpacking the basket. “This looks great... My mum helped you, didn't she?”  
“Only a little.” Mark blushed.  
“You're adorable.” Jack laughed. “Okay. Let's eat so I can see why you brought me out here.”

 

“Just lay back.”   
“Can I open my eyes?” Jack asked.  
“No. Lay on the blanket.”  
“You're not going to murder me, are you?”  
“No.” Mark laughed. “Okay, hang on.” Mark lay down next to him. “Open them.”  
“You''d better not be naked or anything.” He laughed, slowly opening his eyes to reveal the beautiful star filled sky. Mark smiled at his awe filled expression. He was so beautiful in the starlight.   
“Wow... It's so pretty.” Jack whispered.  
“Yeah.” Mark smiled, still looking at Jack. How had he been this lucky? Even with Dark hurting him, Jack had stayed with Mark through everything. He couldn't be happier to have the love of his life here beside him now. Together, they'd tackled a literal demon, and they could take on anything else life threw at them.


	7. Hunting

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Anti goes hunting.

Anti woke slowly. He, Jack, and Mark had gone back to the house after some stargazing and face sucking. He was laying next to Mark, all cuddled up to him. Mark was very warm... It wasn't unpleasant, as much as Anti hated Mark for stealing Jack. Anti had never cuddled with anyone before. It was a new feeling. He wanted to stay and explore those feelings, but he was /starving/. He hadn't been able to feed in weeks. It was hard to hunt unnoticed in LA, but there was a lot of forest around here. He could hunt in the woods and choke down some animal blood.   
Anti untangled himself a bit hesitantly and pulled some jeans on. He snuck out quietly so he wouldn't wake anyone he didn't want to deal with and headed outside. It was still dark out. Good. He had plenty of time to hunt. It might take him a few tries to catch anything since he was so weak. Anti headed into the forest and stopped. He listened to the breeze, taking in the different sents. He could smell his own, Jack's, a lot of Mark's too. Anti dug deeper, smelling squirrel. That would be too small. It would take too long to catch it and he would still be hungry after. There was some raccoon too, but it's blood smelled sour. It was rabid. He made a mental note to avoid it.   
There. A deer. Could he catch a deer in this state? He also smelled a fox... Foxes were faster, but not as strong and easier to take down than a deer was. Would a fox have enough blood? If he didn't get the deer, he could go after that rabbit and hunt again later in the day.   
Anti set of on all fours after the deer, following the sent. He found it in a clearing eating clovers. Anti approached slowly, letting the deer catch his sent. She raised her head and turned to look at him. She studied him and he studied her. Both decided the other wasn't a threat and returned to their business. Anti stepped closer, low to the ground, and she stopped eating to reevaluate what was happening. She, again, decided he wouldn't hurt her and went back to eating clovers. Anti approached slower this time, then charged suddenly and caught a hold of her. He snapped her neck quickly. She hardly felt a thing. Anti wasn't in the mood to torture right now, and he was too weak to hold such a large animal down for a long time. He could /finally/ eat and fix that. Anti took out Jack's just-in-case pocket knife and made a cut on the deer's neck. He drank greedily from the incision, although he had to do more work than he would've liked to get her blood. Anti could manage, drinking deeply. Animal blood was disgusting, but he was too hungry to care; hungry enough it almost tasted /good/. Jack needed to eat more meat so Anti wouldn't get like this so often.  
Now that he had fed, he headed down towards the sound of running water so he could clean up. Anti almost fell into the stream but caught himself. This would do. He crouched and washed the blood from his face and hands. When he'd cleaned up enough, he headed back to the house. He'd shower when he got there. Anti took Jack's shoes off and put them back before creeping back to the bedroom. He shed his jeans, reminding himself to wash the blood off of them, and climbed back into bed.   
Anti wormed his way back into Mark's arms and sighed happily. Nothing said he couldn't enjoy Mark's company; he would still be taking Jack back. He was starting to understand what Jack saw in Mark, but not why he would just abandon Anti for this idiot. Now that he wasn't so hungry, he was starting to fall back asleep. Anti decided that was okay. Jack was waking up and he could have control back for a while. Anti just hoped the blood didn't scare him. The last thing he wanted was to scare Jack.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry if that sucked. It's been a long day and when I don't get comments it feels like I'm writing to a brick wall which isn't your fault, it's mine for not being self motivated to write. But comments are really appreciated, thanks for reading!!!


	8. Hugs and Popcorn

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Pretty much what it says on the tin with some slight existential crisising.

Jack woke slowly. He loved waking up next to Mark, all warm and safe. Mark was starting to wake too. He'd be hungry. Jack would have to make some pancakes. Why wasn't /he/ hungry? Was he getting sick? Jack spotted the bloody jeans on the floor. Oh. Anti must've eaten while he was asleep. He hadn't seen Anti in a while... Jack wouldn't need breakfast then.   
“Morning Jack.” Mark mumbled sleepily.   
“Morning. How'd you sleep.”  
“Good. You?”  
“I always sleep good next to you.” Jack smiled. 

(Soon.) Anti whispered to no one. It wouldn't take much longer to take full control. He and Jack had bonded years ago and he would have no trouble taking over. It was only a matter of time. 

 

Jack had the most beautiful smile. Mark could make him smile brighter than the sun. He did all sorts of ridiculous things to make Jack laugh. Anti used to make Jack laugh like that when he was cleaning Jack up after Dark hurt them. He missed that. He missed being loved. Anti would do anything to get that for just one more day. He knew that if he really /was/ a demon, he shouldn’t be able to love and he definitely shouldn't be lovable. Even if he was a demon, he would get Jack to love him again. He just had to take over, put Jack to sleep, make Mark hate Jack, and then let Jack have control again. Jack would come crawling right back to him in minutes. 

 

Mark and Jack were cuddling again. They were determined to be as close together as physically possible. It made Anti ache for the hugs he and Jack had shared when Jack locked himself in the bathroom to cry. He ached to be back in bed with Mark, falling asleep in his arms. The lovebirds were on the couch and Anti watched them from the top of the fireplace. He stayed hidden from Jack; Anti didn't want an audience right now. He wanted a hug. This was new to him. This wasn't something a demon was supposed to want. Anti was a demon, wasn't he? Like Dark. He shouldn't want a hug, but he desperately craved one. 

 

“I thought you were making popcorn.” Mark laughed. Jack had plastered himself to Mark's back.   
“(I wanted a hug.)”  
“All you ever have to do is ask.” Mark turned away from his battle with the DVD player and pulled 'Jack' into a hug. It didn't last very long before the Irishman pulled away and went into the kitchen.   
Anti was allowed to take advantage of his situation. He could hug Mark if he wanted to. Tired from being out so long and honestly a bit embarrassed, he headed over to where Jack was making popcorn and merged again. He was tired and wanted to sleep.

 

“Hey, this is /my/ popcorn.” Jack scolded when Sarah reached for the bowl.   
“Can't you share?”  
“No. I /made/ this. It's mine.” He whined, settling in on the couch. Mark finally got the movie started and sat down next to him, snagging some popcorn.  
“Why can he have popcorn?” Sarah complained.  
“I like /him/. You I'm just stuck with.” He stuck his tongue out to let her know he was joking and curled into Mark's side.   
Mark wasn't sure why Jack was so cuddly today, but he wasn't complaining. This was nice. He put an arm around Jack and pulled him closer, deciding that asking Jack to marry him was the best decision he'd ever made.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Big thanks to everyone who's stuck with this so far!!!


	9. Greetings

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Mark gets to meet someone new!

“Jack, are you okay?” Mark asked softly.  
“(Of course, why?)”  
“You won't look me in the eye.”  
“(Oh...)” 'Jack' slowly raised his head, meeting Mark's eyes.  
“Jack... Your right eye is green.” Mark whispered.  
“(New contacts.)”  
“Right...” Mark knew exactly what eyes changing color meant. His turned red when Dark was in control.“Is there anything you wanna tell me?”   
This was not Jack.  
“(Um...)” Not Jack hesitated, thinking. His voice was a bit off. It was a little gravely and glitchy. How had Mark missed that?   
“(No? I don't think so.)” Not Jack frowned. The green in his eye had grown brighter over the course of the conversation.   
“Okay. You just looked...” Mark let his sentence trail off. Had it really been Jack he'd hugged yesterday?   
“(I'm fine, don't worry.)” Anti did his best Jack smile. It seemed to work.  
“Alright.” Mark offered a small smile. “Just wanted to make sure. It must be weird to be back here after almost three years.”  
“(Yeah... I guess it kind of is.)” Anti admitted, hoping Mark still thought he was Jack.  
“I'm sorry if this is bringing stuff back. I know it must've been hard after you lost someone so close to you.”   
Anti nodded, dropping his gaze. Killing his and Jack's best friend had been one of the hardest things he's ever done, but the friend had been hurting Jack. The other two were witnesses and it had been easy to kill them... As a demon, killing should be as easy as killing those witnesses was, and he wasn't supposed to be /able/ to get attached. But it /had/ been hard, and being back here wasn't easy. Not that Mark really needed to know that, but he asked.   
“It must be hard for Jack too.”  
Anti's head shot up. Mark knew.  
“(It is, but he has me to help him.)”  
“Does he know about you?”  
Mark had never looked more like Dark than he did in that moment. His voice was menacing, expression threatening.  
“(Of course he does.)”  
“Can I talk to him?” Mark asked. The threatening tone was gone, but Anti realized that with his infrequent feeding and Jack's occasional days without food, Mark was physically stronger than Jack and matched Anti in strength. Anti was faster. He could run if he needed to.   
Anti tried to wake Jack, but he was pushed away.  
“(He's sleeping. He doesn't want to talk.)” Anti told Mark.   
“I don't believe that.”   
Anti closed his eyes again, diving back into his mind to try and wake Jack. The push was more forceful this time. Jack didn't want to deal with this.  
“(He doesn't want to talk.)” Anti assured him, remembering how hard Dark had hit. The way he'd tower over them before the first blow. Mark was doing it now, the towering.   
“Tell him I want to talk to him.”  
“(He won't listen; he's asleep.)” How hard was that to understand? Anti didn't want to get hit, but Jack wasn't getting up anytime soon.  
“Tell him anyways.” Mark was getting impatient. Anti closed his eyes again and was immediately shoved away.  
“(He's tired.)”   
“I don't care if he's tired-.“ Mark took a step towards Anti and he hissed in warning. That seemed to startle Mark but it confused him more than anything.   
“(He won't listen. He doesn't want to be awake for this.)”  
“I just want to talk.”  
“(No. I protect him and he's staying in.)”  
“Protect him from what?” Mark asked.  
“(Anything that could hurt us.)”  
“Well nothing here could hurt him so-.” Mark was cut off by another hiss as he tried to approach Anti. “/Me/? You're protecting him from /me/?”  
“(It's hardly the first time.)”  
“That was Dark and you know it.” Mark snarled, taking a step closer and ignoring Anti's hiss. “I would never hurt Jack.” It was almost amusing that Not Jack was scared of him. Mark had scared a demon. Did demons get scared?  
“(Get away.)”  
There was definitely fear in his eyes. Mark felt a little bad for scaring him and took a few steps back with his hands in the air. “I won't hurt you.”  
Anti hissed again and he backed up a bit more.   
“What's your name anyways?” Mark asked.  
“(Anti).” The creature spat. He looked angry and scared.   
“I'm Mark.”  
“(I /know/ that.)”  
“Well you seem to think I'm Dark.”  
“(I know who you are.)”  
“Then you know I won't hurt you.”  
Anti studied Mark's face. He wanted to trust him, but...   
“Anti.”  
He jumped at the use of his name. It sounded strange, but he decided it wasn't a bad thing.   
“I won't hurt you, or Jack. I promise.”  
Ah yes. Those promises human's were so fond of. Anti hated it, but he felt himself relax a bit. He was letting his guard down over two words?   
“There. Now can I talk to Jack?”  
“(No.)” Mark got enough time with Jack. He didn't need any more. He'd already taken Jack away from him.   
“Okay. Well... Well how long have you been here?”  
“(With Jack? Six years. He's known about me for three.)”  
“And what exactly are you?”  
Anti hesitated. “(I don't know.)”  
“You don't know?”  
“(How do you know you're a human?)”  
“Someone told me I'm a human, I guess.”  
“(Well no one told me anything.)”  
“Okay, why are you here?”  
“(Why are /you/ here?)”  
That was fair.   
“Are you going to hurt anyone?”  
“(No.)”  
“Okay, good.”  
Anti was getting tired of questions. He was hungry again. He would have to hunt. He walked past Mark and out of the house.   
“Hey! Where are you going?” Mark called after him.  
“(I need to eat!)” Anti called back.  
“Wait!” Mark was running after him. “What do you eat?”  
“(Blood, meat. Not human, but I need blood to live. I don't have my own.)”  
“Animal blood, right?”  
“(Yes.)” Anti rolled his eyes and took off after a fox, leaving Mark behind.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope you all like this! I did my best to have Mark react accordingly, but I didn't think he would be that shocked because he was familiar with this sort of thing through Dark. Comments make me ridiculously happy, just so you know... (Wink wink)


	10. Confrontation

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Mark and Jack have a much overdue conversation.

“Jack, why didn't you tell me you had a demon sharing your body?” Mark asked calmly. There was no reason to get upset over this.  
“He's not a demon and he's not out often enough for it to affect you.” Jack tried to rationalize it. “And I didn't know about Dark when I found out about Anti, and I didn't know how to bring it up, and I didn't think you'd believe me and-.” Jack looked like he might cry.  
“It's okay. I'm not mad, okay?” Mark remembered how scared Anti had been of him because of Dark, and he's a demon that's killed three people. If it was the same way with Jack, this conversation could go bad fast.   
“Okay.” Jack said quietly.  
“I just want to help you. I can't help you if you don't tell me when something like this happens. Does he ever hurt you?”  
“No, he's not like that. He's nice.” Jack assured him.  
“Okay. And he's never killed anyone?”  
“Like... Three people, but that was years ago Mark! He would never hurt anyone.”  
Anti liked that Jack was defending him. That meant Jack still loved him. Maybe he didn't need to destroy their relationship. He was willing to share if Mark was. Mark made Jack happy. If there was a way for Anti to keep Jack /and/ Mark, he would.   
“How long ago?”  
“Almost three years. They were trying to hurt me. It was self defense Mark.”  
“That's why you left Ireland? He killed your friend?” Mark was blunt about it. No reason to wrap it up in ribbons.   
“I was scared he'd kill someone else, so I had to get away from my family. I moved to LA and then I met /you/... But he won't kill anyone else, I promise.”  
Those two words again. The words that made people trust you.  
“Alright... I guess if he's not hurting anyone, we don't have to worry about him so you don't have to fight him or bond with him or anything.” Mark decided. “But if he gets violent, tell me right away, okay?”  
“I will.”  
“Good. You know I love you right?” Mark pulled Jack into a hug.  
“Of course. I love you too Mark.”  
Anti wasn't jealous of the hug. Mark could hug Jack all he wanted. Anti didn't care. He would have Jack soon enough.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> That was really short, but can we take a quick poll of how you guys want this ending to go eventually when that happens? Just like a brief comment on happy, sad, something specific, anything you guys want me to include. Thanks so much for reading!!!


	11. Human

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Anti has a revelation.

Anti woke slowly in Mark's arms. He didn't hate waking up like this, for body heat reasons of course. When Anti hadn't fed in a while, he didn't have enough blood to sustain a constant body heat and got really cold, but Mark's body was warming him up nicely. Anti often wondered why he couldn't share blood with Jack if they had the same body, but he wasn't even sure they did. He had scars Jack didn't have, and his right eye was green. He and Jack could even be awake at the same time, in different places. Anti had always assumed he was just projecting himself into the room in Jack's mind, making him think he was standing there when he wasn't, but what if it was more?  
Mark woke to a subtle shifting in his arms. Jack must be awake. Mark opened his eyes, but before he could say anything, he caught a glimpse of Anti's one green eye and decided to pretend he was still asleep. He half expected to be shoved away, after all Anti was a demon who probably didn't appreciate being cuddled, but there was nothing. Anti didn't seem angry. He seemed very relaxed. Maybe he was still asleep. Did demons sleep with their eyes open? It seemed possible, but then Anti shifted closer, actually snuggling into Mark's chest. That was... Different. He was really cold. Maybe that was it. He just wanted to get closer to the source of warmth. Mark could feel his oversized heart reaching out, wanting to protect Anti. But he was a demon, wasn't he? Mark didn't actually know what he was. Anti hadn't known either, had he? He /might/ be some variation of human. Anti shifted closer again, sort of nuzzling into Mark the way Jack did when he wanted to be held and protected. Mark could do that, but the moment Anti knew he was awake, he'd leave. Mark had to be careful. He let out a soft sigh and pulled Anti closer, a movement that could be easily written off and him shifting in his sleep. Anti froze for a moment, but when Mark settled back down, he relaxed and adjusted to the new position.  
This was nice. Anti hated it, but it was true. It was nice to just be held. He spent so much time taking care of Jack there was never anyone to take care of him. It was nice to just be here, listening to Mark's heartbeat, his breathing...   
His breathing was different. Not so smooth and even anymore. He was awake. Anti didn't know what to do about that. Mark stole Jack so he was going to destroy him, but maybe just for right now... No. Anti shoved Mark off, regretting it immediately as the heat left with him, and got out of bed.   
“(I need to hunt today.)” Anti said, pulling on a shirt. “(You can come too. We'll pretend we're going out. You'll have to do the talking. They might see through me.)”  
“Okay.” Mark nodded.  
“(Get dressed. I'll meet you outside. Only give answers if you're asked questions.)”

 

“(Are we clear?)” Anti asked.  
“Yeah. No questions.” Mark jogged over to where he was standing.  
“(Good. Stand still and be quiet.)” Anti instructed. He'd never hunted with another person before... Anti didn't let it put him off, breathing in deeply. A deer. “(Stay here. I'll be back soon.)” He took off on all four in the direction of the scent.  
It was a young buck, stupid and easy to kill. Hopefully Mark didn't mind the sight of blood. He didn't seem to, but he jumped a bit when Anti dragged the deer into the clearing.   
“(Here.)” He had Mark hold it's head steady while he made the small cut.   
“What are you doing?”  
He handed Mark the blade and started drinking greedily. He was starving, gulping down blood as quick as he could. Mark seemed a bit alarmed but didn't run. Anti drained the deer in minutes, still not satisfied but it was enough. He stumbled away from the deer and headed down to the creek, washing up quickly. Animal blood always left him a bit dizzy and he almost fell in, but Mark caught a hold of his arm and held him up.   
“You okay?”  
“(Of course. Animal blood just isn't as good. Makes me woozy.)” Anti explained.  
“Oh. Then why do you drink it?”  
“(Because human blood isn't an option.)” He pushed Mark away and knelt to clean up.  
“How much blood do you need?” Mark asked.  
“(Animal? More than however much that was.)”  
“No, human.”  
“(Um... Maybe a liter, if I wasn't literally starving to death. So I could possibly take it from someone, you can lose five liters without dying, but the cover up job would be too hard.)” Anti explained. “(Animals die in the wild all the time. No one questions it. Humans are harder to catch, harder to drink from while they're alive.)”   
“Oh...” Mark said dumbly.   
“(Yeah.)”  
“Is it any good? Blood?” Mark asked, trying to make small talk.  
“(Human? Yes, very. Animal; depends on how hungry you are. Anything can taste good if you wait long enough. Me and Jack might've had a taste of waiting long enough if you hadn't helped us when we first got to LA.)” Anti immediately regretted the statement. He wasn't supposed to show weakness, wasn't allowed to need help. He /was/ the help.   
“Are you okay?” Mark asked gently.  
“(Yeah, just the blood.)” Anti walked past him and back towards the house. He caught himself entertaining the idea of sharing Jack again, but no. Mark had to go, didn't he?

 

It was hard sometimes, not drinking who he wanted to. Today it had been too hard. The boy was young, only seventeen. He smelled amazing, and Anti was nearing the point where he'd be too weak to hunt. He couldn't ever remember being this hungry. He only took a liter. Just enough. Just enough. His head was spinning as Mark shot him a look. “Teen attacked by animal” the news man read.   
'Animal'. That's all he was? An animal? He didn't want to be an animal. Who could love an animal? Not Jack. Not Mark, from the looks of things. Mark led him from the room and outside.  
“You hurt him, didn't you?”  
“(I've been going through blood so fast. I was starving I couldn't stop myself. I'm sorry.)” Anti whispered.   
“Are they going to trace this back to us? Is Jack going to get blamed for this?”  
“(No.)”  
“How could you do this? Jack... Jack's going to flip. He'll want me to get away so you won't hurt me.”  
“(I won't.)”  
“Yeah? Well you hurt that boy. If Jack wasn't in that body too, I'd turn you in. You're a monster, just like I thought you were.” Mark stormed back inside.  
“(Monster? I... A /monster/? I'll show you a monster.)” Anti growled. He'd been right. Mark couldn't be trusted. He'd have to go. He was no good for Jack, feeding him words like monster. They weren't a monster. He wasn't a monster. He was human.  
“(I'm Anti. And I'm a human.)” He whispered. “(I'm human. I'm-. I'm...”)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Huge thanks to everyone who gave me ideas and requests for the ending and the rest of the work leading up to it!!!


	12. Return

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Jack and Mark fly home.

“Hey Jack?” Mark asked.  
“Yeah?” He turned away fro his latest culinary creation. Mark could've sworn that he saw a flash of green in his right eye.   
“Never mind.” He offered a smile.  
“Okay. Can you pass me the eggs?” Jack was currently making a 'pie'.  
“Yeah.” Mark brought him the carton.   
“Thanks.”  
“Hey, how've you been?”  
“Are you asking because I almost killed someone?”  
“That wasn't you.” Mark assured him.  
“He's been silent. Way too quiet for my liking.”  
“Is he planning something?”  
“I think we should fly back home, as soon as we can.” Jack decided.   
“Alright, I'll book the tickets.” Mark left the kitchen. Jack cracked an egg into the bowel than grabbed the counter top as a sudden bout of dizziness overcame him. It passed quickly and he went back to cooking.  
“The earliest isn't until tomorrow.” Mark came back in.  
“Book that.”  
“On it.” He headed back out and nausea washed over Jack, making him retch. What was happening to him?

 

“We're next.” Mark reminded Jack fearfully, hands shaking.   
“It'll be okay. It's safe, remember?” Jack took his hand. “Let's go.” They headed up to the boarding docks and took their seats on the plane.   
“Jack.” Mark whispered as the engine started up.  
“It's okay.” He placed a hand on Mark's knee to comfort him.  
“W-Will you stay up and talk to me?” Mark whispered, eyes closed tightly.  
“Of course. You're just fine.”  
The anticipation of the flight had nearly killed him, and now that he was all worked up, he was absolutely terrified.   
“I'm right here.”  
“Jack.” He whimpered.   
“Try to relax. I've got you.”   
Mark nodded and squeezed Jack's hand. This was going to be a long flight.

 

“That wasn't so bad, was it?” Jack asked with a small smile.  
“I guess we're both still alive.” Mark grumbled. “Let's never do that again.” He met Jack's eyes, looked confused for a moment, then shrugged.   
“What?”   
“I thought your eye was green for a minute. I guess not.”

 

“It's good to be home.” Jack laughed, collapsing on the couch with a sigh. “I mean, Ireland was nice, but there's really no place like home.”  
“Yeah,” Mark smiled. "Are we going to talk about why we're here so soon?”  
“It's Anti. He's just gone silent. Something's wrong. He's angry, I can feel it.”  
“Is he going to hurt anyone else?”  
“No, and he didn't mean to hurt that boy. He lost control of himself. He needed the blood and fast.”   
“Why are you defending him?”  
“Because it was an /accident/ Mark!” Jack glared, suddenly defensive.   
“Sorry, I didn't mean to upset you.” Mark held up his hands in a peaceful gesture.  
“I'm going to take a shower.” Jack decided, storming out of the room and leaving a very confused Mark in his wake.

 

“Look,” Jack said, walking into the kitchen. “I'm sorry I yelled. I don't know what came over me.”  
“It's okay. It was a long flight. I think we're both a bit riled up.”  
Jack face planted into Mark's chest and Mark wrapped his arms around the Irishman.   
“You okay?” He asked.  
“Yeah.” Jack pulled Mark closer, nuzzling into his neck. “Just tired.”  
“Okay. Let's go to bed.” Mark lifted him and he wound his legs around Mark's waist. When they got to the bedroom, Mark fell back on the bed with Jack on top of him and guided him into a kiss.  
“Mmm.” Jack sighed, relaxing. “I'm really sorry I yelled.”  
“It's okay. Let's just go to bed.”  
Jack nodded, but something felt wrong. Horribly wrong.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you all so much for your loving support of this story! It may be shorter or longer than I anticipated, but it's currently looking like it will be longer. In my plans, this work is the final part to The Darkness Inside unless someone ends up giving me a boss ass sequel idea. Just to clarify, this work still has many chapters to come, but there won't be any more once it's done. Sorry I guess. Thanks for motivating me to write more! Another chapter will go up tomorrow as usual!!!


	13. Fight or Flight Part One

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A few discoveries are made. I didn't edit this I'm sorry.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, as soon as I told you guys there would be no part three, I decided the next day there needs to be a part three, but it will be very short, like under ten chapters, so don't get to excited. Also there won't be a part four. That's final.

Mark woke up to Jack nuzzling his neck, burrowing into his chest.  
“Morning cuddle bug.” Mark laughed.  
“Morning.” Jack smiled and went back to his task of trying to merge with Mark.   
“Are you okay?”  
“I'm just cold and you're warm.” Jack explained, looking up at Mark apologetically. Mark thought he saw green, but that couldn't be right. Jack's eyes were both clearly blue.   
“I can turn up the heat?”  
“Don't leave!” Jack whined, snuggling closer.   
“I'm not going anywhere.” Mark promised. He pulled the covers up over Jack to trap the warmth in. He really /was/ cold. “Are you sick?”  
“Maybe. I didn't feel very well yesterday.” Jack admitted, voice a bit raspy.  
“You should just rest today. We got back early so I have extra videos and I can spend the day taking care of you.” Mark pressed a gentle kiss to his forehead. “Does your throat hurt?”  
Jack nodded.  
“Okay, I'll bring you something to drink.” Mark got out of bed after some protests from Jack and turned the heat up before bringing him some apple juice. “Here.” He uncapped the bottle and offered it to him.  
“Thanks.” Jack took a few sips and gave it back. Mark set the juice on the side table and lay back down next to him. The Irishman snuggled into his chest with a sigh.   
“Better?” Mark asked.  
“Much.” Jack smiled, pulling the blankets up over them. “Thanks.”  
“Anytime. You get some sleep now.”   
Jack nodded and let his eyes slip shut.

 

Anti opened his eyes. Great. In Mark's arms again. Not worth being out then. He didn't want to get cozy with Mark. This human thought he was a monster anyways. Anti closed his eyes and let Mark's body heat lull him back to sleep.

 

“Hey, Jack. Wake up. You need to eat.”   
Jack opened his eyes. One blue and one green. Anti. He glared at Mark.  
“(I can't hunt here and Jack is asleep. Leave me alone.)”  
He looked weak. /Very/ weak...   
“I... I'll bring you something. You need blood, yeah?”  
Anti nodded.  
“And if you get it, Jack won't be sick anymore?”  
“(Perhaps. I heal faster than he does.)”  
“Okay. I'll get you blood. Stay here.” Mark left.

 

“You up?” Mark asked. “I've got it.”   
“(Yes, I'm awake.)”  
“Here.” Mark set a cardboard box half filled with blood bags on the nightstand  
“(How did you get this?)”  
“I'm famous; I can get things. Drink.” Mark instructed. Anti nodded and grabbed one of the bags. He drank with his eyes closed, a soft moan escaping at the taste. Human blood was so much better than animal blood. He never wanted to go back to it.   
Mark found Anti fascinating. He wasn't a demon, Mark knew that much. He was too... Naive? He wasn't a demon. Something about him made Mark want to take care of him, make sure nothing hurt him.   
“Wait, how long did you say you've been here?”  
“(Six years.)” Anti was still drinking deeply.  
“And before that? Before Jack?”  
“(What do you mean?)”  
“I mean was there anything before your six years with Jack?”  
“(No.)”  
“So, you've been around for six years?”  
“(Maybe seven. I can't remember much before that. Why is that so hard to understand?)” Anti snapped.  
“No reason. I just... No reason.” Mark left Anti to his meal and went into the kitchen. Jack would be better tomorrow. Six? /Six/? Anti was only six years old? No wonder Mark wanted to take care of him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ANTI IS NOT A SIX YEAR OLD!!!!!!!! NOTHING ABOUT HIM IS SIX!!!! WHAT WE LEARNED HERE IS THAT HE IS MUCH YOUNGER THAN WE ORIGINALLY THOUGHT!!!!! HE IS OLDER THAN SIX!!!!!! LIKE A FAIR AMOUNT OLDER AS I WILL EXPLAIN IN THE NEXT CHAPTER!!!!! That's all, thanks for reading!


	14. Fight or Flight Part Two

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Mark and Anti chat.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Is anyone even reading this anymore? Like, are you guys still here? Hello?

Anti was sitting on the bed, drinking from another blood bag. Mark watched him in silence for a moment before he started asking questions again.  
“How were you created anyways? Did you possess Jack? Was there one moment you sort of formed?” Mark asked.  
“(I'm not like Dark and I didn't form like he did.)” Anti glared, mildly offended that someone who didn't even like him was rude enough to interrupt his meal. “(I was created very slowly as a part of Jack broke off from the rest and the two parts each developed into their own being. Two souls, one body.)”  
“So you're human?”  
“(Maybe. I haven't decided.)”   
“Well, you're human or you're not. You don't really decide.”  
“(Does it matter what I am?)”  
“I guess not... So you're six years old?” Mark asked.  
“(Physically, I'm twenty four like Jack. Mentally I'm not sure. I feel older than six.)”  
“How old?”  
“(Everything needs to be specific with you. How old are you? Are you human? How should I know? Not as old as Jack, but older than six.)” Anti decided.  
“Oh... And you've been hunting animals that whole time?”  
“(You act like I'm so innocent. I didn't /kill/ anyone for food, but I've had human blood. They don't need to die for me to feed off of them.)”  
“You hunt humans?” Mark seemed to be somewhere between shock and disgust.  
“(I don't produce my own blood Mark. Separate souls mean we have slightly different bodies, but still the same basic form. I can't leech off of Jack so I need to take in blood.)”  
“How does it even get from your stomach to your veins?” Mark asked.  
“(How should I know? You ask too many questions.)”  
Anti was getting annoyed. Mark must've picked up on that so he stopped asking.   
“Well... I'm Mark. I'm a human, and I'm twenty six.”  
“(I'm Anti... I'm older than six, and I... I am human.)”  
“See, that's a good start.” Mark smiled.   
“(Start of what?)”  
“Of getting to know each other.”  
“(We're not friends, and I don't want to 'get to know each other'.)” Anti growled, his sudden aggression startling Mark.   
“Well, we don't have to I guess.”  
“(Sorry, I didn't mean to snap at you. I'm more prone to attack while I'm eating.)” He explained, feeling a little bad about it.  
“It's okay. Natural instinct right? Get ready to protect your food and pack?”  
“(Pack?)”  
“You don't hunt with a pack?” Mark asked.  
“(Where would I find a pack?)”  
“I thought you and Dark hunted together before he died.”  
“(Dark and I were not friends, and Dark isn't dead. He's just very weak.)”  
“He's still in me?” Mark clutched at his own chest as if to pull Dark out of his body. He looked absolutely terrified.   
“(Sort of. He's not still there in his full, arrogant self, but there are traces of him left. It's not anything you need to worry about.)” Anti promised. 

 

“Anti, go away.” Jack groaned. He seemed to be intent on cuddling. Jack wanted to go back to sleep.  
“(I miss you Jack. You never spend time with me anymore. You're always with Mark.)” He protested.  
“You need to learn to share.”  
“(I would love to share, but right now 'sharing' seems to mean you spend every second of every day with Mark and never have time to spend with me.)” He pouted, trying to snuggle into Jack's chest.  
“I don’t want to cuddle Anti.” Jack pushed him off. “And you're being childish.”  
“(Jack.)” He whined. “(I never see you anymore. Can't we cuddle? You cuddle with Mark all the time.)”  
“I don't feel like it right now, okay?” Jack snapped, getting up and heading off in search of Mark. He was in the living room. Mark jumped when Jack flopped down on the couch next to him.   
“Hey. How're you feeling?” He asked.  
“A lot better. I guess I just needed to sleep it off.” Jack rested his head on Mark's shoulder.   
“Yeah.” Mark put an arm around him and pulled him closer with a sigh. “Are you hungry?”  
“No, surprisingly. Maybe I'm still a bit sick then...”  
“Maybe. Oh, Susan called to make sure we made it home alright. Do you wanna call her back?”  
“Sure, yeah.” Jack got up and headed to the kitchen to call her. He felt a lot better physically, but the dread in the back of his mind had only grown. What was he so scared of?  
(What indeed...)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Anyone who's reading this, thanks for doing so!!! I really appreciate it!!!!


	15. Fight or Flight Part Three

“Hey, Jack.”  
Anti turned around.  
“Oh, hi.” Mark said, unfazed. “Is Jack around?”  
“(No.)” Anti snapped. “(He's in bed.)”  
“Oh... Are you okay?”  
“(Why would I be okay?)”  
“I don't know. Well if you're not okay, what's wrong?”  
“(Why would /you/ care?)”  
“Well if we're going to be friends, I should help you through stuff, and you should be able to trust me with your problems. We can start now. What's going on?” Mark asked. Anti didn't want to tell him anything, but there was something in his eyes... Not fear, not anger. Maybe it was compassion, but it made Anti want to trust him.   
“(It's Jack.)” He sighed.  
“Is he okay?” Mark asked gently, wanting to be still and listen but concerned.  
“(He's fine. Wonderful actually. He's got a loving family and he's about to get married and accepted into your loving family. He has a fiance who loves him and a stable job. He has everything he could dream of.)”  
“Then what's wrong?”  
“(It's seems I'm not in these dreams of his.)” Anti fought back tears. Crying was a very human thing to do and he didn't like it.   
“Of course you are. Maybe not right now, he's having a hard time trusting you, but you will be.” Mark assured him.  
“(Why doesn't he trust me? I took care of him. I healed him when Dark hurt us, and now he's acting like I don't matter.)” Tears were flowing and Anti hated them.  
“You do matter. Jack... Jack's in a weird place right now. He's sick and he's got a lot to process and he just went back to Ireland after like three years. It's just a lot for him and he has a hard time balancing all the things he has going on. You just didn't make it on the scale this time. It'll be okay. Let's go to the couch, okay? We'll get you all wrapped up in fuzzy blankets and turn on Iron Man Three and I'll make you cocoa and we can cuddle as much as you want. How does that sound?”  
“(Why?)”  
“You're sad. I want to make you happy and those are things that make me happy.” Mark explained. He scooped Anti up bridal style and set him down on the couch. He came back and wrapped him up in fluffy blankets before popping Iron Man Three in and heading to the kitchen to make cocoa.   
“Okay. Hot cocoa.” Mark entered the room with two mugs and handed one to Anti. “Don't burn yourself.” He hit play on the movie and pulled Anti into his side. He tasted the warm, dark liquid experimentally. It was surprisingly good. Even better than blood.   
“What did you mean when you said Jack was in bed?” Mark asked.  
“(I mean he's in bed. In the bedroom.)”  
“What? Are you not in his body right now?”  
“(No. I have a body, apparently. I can be awake at the same time as him.)”  
“Seriously?”  
“(Yes?)”  
“That's really cool.”  
“(Mark?)”  
“Yeah?”  
“(Thanks for the cocoa.)”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I barely have time to post this so I didn't have time to edit. So sorry.


	16. Flight Part One

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Jack wasn't the only sick person in the house.

Jack was wondering around the house, sort of headed towards the kitchen when he heard a soft noise, almost a whimper. He followed the noise to the bedroom where Anti was laying in bed. He was very pale, and almost see through like a ghost.   
“Are you okay?”  
He was shivering, drenched in sweat.   
“You look awful. Are you sick?”  
“M-Maybe.” Anti shivered. He couldn't ever remember being this cold.   
“Stay here, I'll get Mark. He'll know what to do.” Jack hurried away and brought Mark back.  
“Hey buddy.” He said gently, sitting on the side of the bed. “How're you feeling?”  
“(There's a rising in my stomach and I'm very cold.)”  
“You think you're gonna throw up?”   
Anti nodded.  
“Jack, can you bring us a trashcan, a water bottle, and a thermometer?”   
Jack nodded and headed out.  
“Did you eat today?”  
“(Not hungry.)”  
“Well when Jack gets back I'll make you toast.”  
“(Toast?)”  
“It's human food. You'll like it, as long as you can keep it down I guess.”  
“(Keep it down?)”  
“Yeah, as in don't throw it up. Keep it in your stomach.”  
“(Throwing up does not sound pleasant.)” Worry crept into his voice.  
“You'll be okay.” Mark stroked his hair out of his eyes. “Oh wow. For someone who's usually freezing cold, you're really warm.”  
“(What does that mean?)”  
“Means you have a fever. It's your body heating itself up to kill any viruses or bacteria that are making you sick.” Mark took the blankets off of him to cool him down.  
“(If my body is hot, why do I feel cold?)” Anti pulled the blankets back up.  
“You're really warm, and the air around you is colder, so the warmer you are, the colder the air feels.” Mark took the blankets again, sitting on them so Anti couldn't take them back.  
“(Why do you keep taking my blankets?)” Anti looked hurt.  
“So you'll cool down and won't die because your fever is too high.”   
“(If it could kill me, why does my body keep making itself warmer?)”  
“Because it's trying to get rid of those viruses. It doesn't realize it could kill you.”  
“(Then it's stupid and I want my blankets.)” He tried to pull them out from under Mark to no avail.   
“I need to bring your fever down, okay? I know you're cold, but you can't have these right now. I'm going to see what's keeping Jack and make you some toast, okay?”  
Anti nodded.  
“Good. I'll be right back.” Mark got up and left.

 

“Okay, I need you to hold this under your tongue.” Mark set a tray of things down on the nightstand and grabbed the thermometer. When he turned around, Anti was all cuddled up in the blankets again.  
“Anti! I told you you can't have those.”  
“(But I'm cold!)”  
“You have a fever! Of course you're cold! That doesn't mean you can just take the blankets back! Here, put this under your tongue.” Mark shoved the thermometer in Anti's mouth and yanked the blankets off of the bed. Anti let out a whine, but he couldn't protest because of the thermometer.  
“You're fine.” Mark took it back and check the reading. “Okay, you have a fever but it's not /too/ bad. That means you can stay here and Jack and I will take care of you instead of sending you to a hospital.”  
“(Will the hospital give me blankets?)”  
“No. You're not going there anyways.” Mark set the trash can on the floor next to the bed. “If you throw up, try to do it in the trash can. If you can't, it's not a big deal so don't worry about it. Do you want toast?”  
“(I'm not hungry.)”  
“You should try and eat something anyways. I'll bring you toast.” Mark got up and went to make toast. When he came back, Anti was cuddled up in new blankets that he'd fetched from the hall closet.  
“Anti! No! You can't have these!” Mark took those blankets too and gave Anti the toast.”There, eat that.”  
Anti sniffed it before taking a very small bite.  
“(I don't want it. I'm not hungry.)” He set it back on the plate and curled in on himself in an attempt to conserve body heat.   
“Okay, later then.” Mark sat on the side of the bed again, reaching over to play with Anti's hair. He tensed at the initial contact but then relaxed. “You should try to sleep.”  
“(Why?)”  
“You need rest so your body can heal.”  
“(Oh. Why does it need to heal?)”  
“Because you're sick.”  
“(Why am I sick? I've never been sick before.)”  
“Just close your eyes.”  
“(I'm not tired.)”  
“Yes you are. You're talking to keep yourself awake.”  
“(Am not. Besides, I can't sleep.)”  
“Why not?”  
“(You keep taking my blankets!)”  
“You have a fever! You can't have blankets!”  
“(But I'm cold!)”  
“If I let you have one of the blankets back, will you go to sleep?”   
Anti nodded eagerly.  
“Alright, fine.” Mark got one of the blankets and draped it over Anti. “There, nice and cozy. Get some sleep.” He stood to leave.  
“(Wait you're leaving me?)”  
“Um... I was going to, yeah.”  
“(Oh... But I'm sick.)”  
“I can stay if you want.” Mark offered.  
“(I'm fine, but if you /want/ to I guess I can't stop you.)” Anti decided. He may be human, but he still didn't get lonely, and he didn't care if Mark stayed or not.  
“Okay.” Mark seemed amused for some reason, but he sat on the edge of the bed again. “You can't go to sleep if you don't close your eyes.”  
Anti sighed but finally closed them, letting Mark's presence calm him enough he could sleep.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I love to hear anything you have to say, so if you want to give me feedback or just say something random, be sure to leave a comment!!! Thanks so much for reading you lovely people!!!


	17. Flight Part Two

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Anti is getting worse.

“He's definitely in his own body.” Jack agreed. Anti was asleep in bed still, but he was in his own teenage body. Not in a near clone of Jack's.   
“How?”  
“I don't know. Maybe we grew apart? I mean, we weren't really fully in one body the whole time. We could both be standing in the kitchen looking at each other. You can't do that in one body. We must've just finally split apart.” Jack shrugged. “But that's not the problem. The problem is he's really sick.”  
“Right... We might have to take him to the hospital.” Mark sighed. “I'll wake him up, you get the thermometer and your insurance card. We can pretend he's our kid. Looks enough like you.”  
“On it.” Jack headed out of the room and Mark sat on the edge of the bed.   
“Hey kiddo.” He shook Anti gently. “I need you to wake up real quick.”   
Anti groaned and weakly pushed his hand away.   
“Come on. I gotta take your temperature. We might have to take you to the hospital.” Mark stroked his hair out of his face. He was burning up.  
“Thermometer.” Jack handed it to him.  
“Anti, can you open your eyes for me?”  
He did so slowly.  
“Good, I need you to hold this under your tongue again.” Mark said. He took it and put it in his mouth. After a moment, Mark took it back and checked it.   
“Yeah, he needs to go to the hospital. Start the car. I'll bring him in a minute.” Mark told Jack, then turned back to Anti. “Hey, we're gonna have to go to the hospital. It's going to be okay. You're temperature is just too high. Can you sit up?”  
Anti groaned in protest.  
“Yeah, I know. But the doctors there will make you feel better, okay? Lift your head for me?”  
Anti slowly sat up and Mark picked him up bridal style. “There you go. Alright, let's go.” Mark carried him out to the car and just held him, foregoing seat belts for now.   
“Alright, let's go.” Mark said and Jack headed off.

 

“Alright, we'll call you and tell you when we know more.” The nurse told them.  
“Alright.” They headed back to the car.   
“Do you think he'll be alright? I mean, it looked pretty bad.” Jack told him. “What if...?”  
“He'll be alright. The doctors know what to do.” Mark assured him. “Let's go home.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Short and shitty, just like me! Thanks for reading!!!


	18. Sunshine

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Jack and Mark wait for the call.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I re-edited and re-re-posted because I realized this was not what I wanted, or not what I wanted /yet/ at least... *Evil author smirk.* Sorry about the wait and failed chapters... Third time's a charm! Here we go!!!

“He's gonna be okay.” Mark assured Jack.  
“What if he's not? The doctors seemed pretty worried. They put him on oxygen. Did you see how pale he was? Maybe we should've given him blood before we took him there.”  
“He'll be fine, I promise.” Mark pulled Jack into his chest.   
“What if he's not?”  
“He will be.”  
“But-.”  
“Jack, come on. You know how he is. He can recover from anything. Let's go take a shower, get you calmed down, and go to bed. We'll know by tomorrow.” Mark scooped Jack up bridal style and started to carry him to the bathroom.   
“I don't want a shower. I'm staying right here by the phone until they call.” Jack folded his arms over his chest. “Put me down.”  
Mark frowned and set him back on the couch.   
“You really care about him. Looks like I have some competition. Alright. I'll wait with you.” Mark sat next to Jack and pulled him close. “You can close your eyes if you want. It's late and you had a long day.”  
“You'll wake me up if they call?”  
“Of course.” Mark promised, pressing a kiss to his forehead.   
“Okay...” Jack sighed. “But only for a little bit.” He relaxed into Mark and let his eyes slip shut. “You should sing. You have such a nice voice.” Jack mumbled.  
“You are my sunshine. My only sunshine.” Mark sang softly, making Jack smile. “You make me happy, when skies are gray. You'll never know dear, how much I love you. Please don't take my sunshine away.”   
Jack's breathing had evened out now. He was asleep.  
“I'll always love you and make you happy, if you will only say the same. But if you leave me and love another, you'll regret it all some day.”   
The phone started ringing startling Mark. Were they calling already? He leaned over to answer it.  
“Hello?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you all so much for reading!!! I'm sorry the last chapter was so short and took three attempts, but I hope you liked this! Part three will start going up by Friday. I'm super excited to write more and can't wait to share it with you guys!!! See you soon!!!! Any questions, compliments, concerns, objections, or suggestions are welcome in the comments!!!


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